


The Devil's Muse

by Earl_White_of_Mornings



Category: Assassintation Classroom
Genre: Angst, Classical Music, College, I'm Bad At Tagging, Korosensei isn't an Octopus, Music, Pop/Rock, Romance, Some Humor, Teaching, more music, other stuff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-12
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-23 11:30:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9655100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Earl_White_of_Mornings/pseuds/Earl_White_of_Mornings
Summary: In which Karma is a music teacher and Gakushuu is his reluctant student. Forced to live together, it will be a showdown between the musical mastermind and the mathlete. Who will prevail? Three months is the time limit and the clock starts counting down now!





	1. A Forced but Fateful Encounter

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everybody!!! This is my first posted fanfic so please let me know what you think!  
> This story does not follow the events of the anime/manga at all. Sorry for the more American style approach, but I didn't want to make a fool of myself trying to use all of the proper Japanese honorifics and customs. Please enjoy and I intend to update as soon as possible.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story related to Assassination Classroom :)

"What instrument would you like to learn?" my father asks. 

"Ehhhh....? " was all I could manage. It wasn't my most articulate moment in the arena, but quite frankly, I was shocked. We were in his study. He was seated behind his huge wooden desk and I stood on the other side. No matter how many times I've been here to "talk" to my father, it always felt like I was standing in a principal's office. He looked up and I could see the gears turning in his head. Wherever this was going, I knew I wouldn't be able to worm my way out of it. But that didn't keep me from trying to come up with a way. Summer had just started and the last thing I wanted to do was spend it learning some dumb instrument. But before I could even object, my father started in on his reasoning. 

"Knowing how to play an instrument is a vital skill in high society and one you would do well to learn. Music is a universal language, no matter who you are or where you're from. Music is something that everyone can understand," my father says, tapping his finger on the desk. "Think of it like a foreign language class. Master it and it will serve you well when you're older. Now, is there a specific instrument you want to play or will any do?"  
I just stare at him. I could tell he was serious by the slight tilt of his head and the sharp glint in his stare. I sigh, there was only one way out of this situation and that was to go along with it. When my father sets his mind on something there's no changing it. He's the kind of man that gets what he wants, no matter the cost or repercussions. Something I knew all too well. This wasn't the fist time I've been subjected to his whims like this. I cringed as I thought back to all the clubs and sports teams I was forced to join in high school. I thought that since I was finally out of school the ridiculous requests would cease, but I should have known better. I sigh again, resigned to my fate. "Any instrument will do," I say, not even trying to keep the contempt out of my voice. Not caring whatsoever which instrument he picked. This was the best course of action I could think of at the moment. In a couple of months, I would have the instrument down pat and I could get on with my life. It's as simple as that. Or that's what I thought anyways until my father opens his mouth again. 

"Perfect," he says as if he knew that would be my answer. "Well now that that matter is settled, you need to start packing. We're leaving in a week." 

"What the fuck do you mean we're leave in a week? Where are we going?" I say, forgetting to mind my language. My father holds up a hand, a dark look on his face. The signal to be silent is loud and clear. 

"You heard me correctly. And to answer your question, for the remainder of the summer you'll be staying with your instructor. His name is Karma and he teaches music at the college near his home. He is also a good friend of mine so you better mind yourself while you're there," he says turning around in his chair and waving me towards the door. "You're excused."

"Like hell," I shout. This is ridiculous. He honestly can't expect me to just up and move in with a stranger. Plus, I didn't want to leave. That would mean leaving all of my friends behind and possibly not getting to see them again before we all parted ways for college. "You can't do this! What about all of the plans I've already made with my friends!"

My father slammed his hand down on the desk, startling me. The look on his face was an odd mixture of mischief and irritation. "I can and I am," he says with finality. "And don't worry, your friends won't be too far behind you," he adds on a lighter note. 

"What do you mean?" I ask, praying that he won't say what I'm thinking. If my line of thought was correct my friends were going to hate me. 

"I've already arranged things with their parents," my stomach drops, "they will all be learning an instrument and staying with their instructors as well. Not to worry, though, they won't be far from you. All of your instructors are very close friends." 

Yup. They were definitely gonna hate me. I turn around, getting ready to storm out of the room and give the door a good slam, when my father adds in a voice dripping with smugness, "Oh, and Gakushuu. I'm expecting results as always." I roll my eyes and leave the room, slamming the door behind me. My father's laugh can be heard as I make my way back to my room. 

I'm laying on my bed contemplating murder when the first wave of messages come. Fuuuck. I reach down and grab my phone. 

Gakushuu Asano added to the group chat "What the F*CK Asano"

Ren: Dude what the hell is this shit. >:(

Seo: You need to learn how to control your fucking dad dude. Put him on leash or something man 

Gakushuu: Have you met the man???? Like I stood a chance in hell against that!

Araki: Dude your one thing, but why the fuck were the rest of us dragged into it?

Ren: Riiight!? What did we do to deserve this?

Koyama: Come on guys cut Asano some slack. We all know who's really on the leash *Woof* LMFAO.

Gakushuu: Fuck you man... At least we're all gonna be in the same area.

Seo: Ya... out in the middle of bum-fuck-nowhere 

Gakushuu: Wait, what????Where?

Araki: Didn't your dad tell you? 

Gakushuu: Tell me what?

Ren: Dude... our "instructors" are all fucking hermits that live out in the Midwest.

Koyama: Yup, my dad said that the closest town is like an hour away 

Seo: So who are your guys' instructors?

Ren: Some bitch named Irina Yelavic

Araki: Same

Seo: Mine is some guy named Koro

Koyama: Same here man! Woot were gonna be roomies!!!!!

Gakushuu: That's bullshit, why am I the odd man out?

Ren: Who's your teacher?

Gakushuu: Some old-fuck, friend of my dad's named Karma 

Araki: Shitty man, though you deserve it because this is all your fault.

Gakushuu: No need to state the obvious prick (-_-)

Seo: Don't worry, we won't hassle you to hard about ruining our LAST summer together

Ren: Indeed 

Gakushuu: Fuck...

Gakushuu Asano has left the group "What the F*ck Asano"

I throw my phone across the room and lay there, thinking. What the fuck did my father get us into?

The week went by in a flash. It felt like I was just standing in my father's study yesterday, but now here we are. Sitting in a rental car in front of a tiny house out in the middle of nowhere. Well, I guess that it isn't too tiny, probably about the size of a normal house. Not that I would know, though, since I live, or I guess I should say lived, in what could technically be called a mansion. 

I spare a glance at my father who only smirks at me, his eyes alight with mischievous humor. I want to slap him. So fucking hard. I clench my fists and turn my gaze back to the house. It could be worse, I think to myself. At least it looks like the house and yard are well maintained and cared for. 

I'm pulled out of my thoughts by my father asking, "Are you just going to sit here all day or are you going to go inside?" A small frown replaces the amused smirk. "Because if it's the former then I'm terribly afraid that I won't be able to join you. Unlike you, I need to get some sleep before my flight tomorrow and your roommate graciously extended an invitation for me to stay here tonight."

"Really?" I ask, not even trying to hide the relief in my voice. Not that I will ever admit it, but I was glad that my dad was going to be staying at least one night. Even if my father knows this Karma guy, he's still a stranger to me and I don't do well with strangers. My father chuckles at me and ruffles my hair before saying, "Come on," and opening his door. He gets out and starts walking towards the house, not even sparing a glance my way to see if I'm going to follow or not. I begrudgingly open my door and get out as well. I make my way to where my father is standing at the foot of the steps leading up to the porch. He does glance at me this time, no doubt making sure that I'm following, before making his way up the steps and knocking on the door. 

No one answers. My father lets out a small chuckle before reaching into his pocket and retrieving a key. He unlocks the door and swings it open. He walks in like he owns the place. Which, come to think of it, wasn't an unusual attitude for him. The first thing I notice when I enter the house is the smell. It smells amazing, like fresh baked cookies. The second thing I notice is the music. Somewhere farther inside the house, classical music is playing. I feel a chill sweep down my spine as I listen. 

"That would explain why he didn't answer the door," my father says. I look over at him, surprised to see an actual smile on his face. He starts moving toward a set of French doors on the other side of the living area. I notice that the source of the music is coming from that direction so I decide to follow. The music grows louder as I make my way across the living room and with each step the chill I felt grows. Sunlight pours through the doors and when I step into the room behind my father I'm blinded for a second. When I regain my bearings I'm standing in a room with walls consisting entirely of windows. The exception being the two floor to ceiling, wooden bookcases. The carpet is a deep burgundy and the little bit of wall that peeks through is a bright white. The furniture looks as though it was pulled straight from a Victorian London home. A sleek, white divan trimmed with dark wood takes up one corner of the room and a matching set of chairs sit catty-corner to it. A small wooden table separates them. The table is set with white lace and a bouquet of white roses. The other side of the room is occupied by a white, baby grand piano. Various other instruments sit throughout the room. Guitars, cellos, a harp, and some odd stringed instruments that I don't even have a name for. But the most interesting thing in the room isn't the instruments, it's the person standing in the center of it. The source of the music. 

I feel goose bumps crawl across my arms. The boy doesn't realize that he gained an audience. He just stands there, sawing away notes with the bow. His eyes are closed and he has a look on his face that I can't quite place. I can only describe it as cold. He's a little taller than me, though he looks about the same age. His blood red hair is pulled back into a small ponytail, with the exception of his bangs which are long enough to graze his eyelashes. 

The room slowly fades away as the music continues, replaced by trees surrounding a still lake, the redhead standing at the center. As the notes flow from the violin, the lake begins to freeze, starting at his feet and working its way outward. It picks up speed as the tempo of the song increases. A gentle breeze makes its way through the trees and across the lake only to pick up speed as well. Snow begins falling at some point but my attention is focused solely on the eye of the storm. He stood there, eyes closed, with such a frigid look on his face that it rivals the landscape he's creating with his music. The music begins to slow down and with it, the sudden onslaught of winter. But it's a fragile peace, one I know isn't going to last. I can hear the hidden promise of the coming storm in the softness of the notes. The music speeds up again but the weather remains calm. Intensity building with every note. I hold my breath, waiting, and sure enough, the scarlet haired boy unleashes true winter. The sound is absolutely breathtaking and in the blink of an eye, everything is under a thick blanket of snow and ice. 

He's a devil, that's the only explanation. There was no way a human can make music like that. Standing there, his hair like a splash of blood on the blanket of white, sawing at the strings with the bow. The storm begins to die down before abruptly stopping as the last note is pulled from the instrument. The scene slowly begins to fade out and I find myself back in the music room. The redhead opens his eyes and amber orbs look up at me in surprise, quickly followed by curiosity. It doesn't take me long before I realize why he looks so curious. I feel the hot trail of a single tear burn down my cheek. Ducking my head, I quickly used the sleeve of my shirt to wipe it away. What the fuck?! What is this? I quickly regained my composure before looking back up at the redhead. He stares holes through me and is starting to make me feel uncomfortable. 

At least, he was until my father suddenly claps and scares the holy living hell out of me. As proud as I am, I can't even deny that it makes me jump a good foot into the air. I completely forgot that he was standing there. The redhead just smirks and lets out a low chuckle. I turn to face my father and am surprised to see another real smile on his face. "Karma, it's good to see you again!" 

Wait... 'Karma...' I look at the redhead again and feel my eyes narrow. This is the friend my father is making me live with for the summer? I figured this was just another student who happened to be here too. He is just so young, nothing like how I imagined. When my father said friend, my first thought was someone my father's age. Not someone who was close to, if not the same age as me. I look Karma up and down and take note of his clothes. He's wearing black and red baller shorts and a white T-shirt with... Wait, is that Mickey Mouse? Now I'm really confused. This is definitely not the type of person I think of as being a friend of my fathers, who is always immaculately dressed in a suit and tie. I don't realize just how hard I'm staring until Karma says, "You know if you leave your mouth open like that your going to swallow a fly". A Cheshire grin spreads across his face. 

It takes me a second to realize that I'm the one being spoken to, and another second for the words to set in. As soon as they do, I snap my mouth closed and look away. Karma laughs, soon followed by my father. I just shake my head, not trusting myself to speak at the moment. Luckily I didn't have anything to say.

"It's good to see that you're still playing," my father says. He walks over to the boy and places a hand on his shoulder before drawing him into a hug. My eyes widen at that. My father doesn't hug people. Hell, he barely even touched even touches my mom. 

The boy chuckles, wrapping his unoccupied arm around my father's waist. "It's good to see you, Gakuhou." I look at my dad, ready for him to get angry that someone used his first name so casually. Most people just call him Asano, even my mother. I wait for a moment before I realize that that anger isn't going to make an appearance. Now I'm just confused again, which seems to be happening a lot today. Since when did the cold and manipulative Gakuhou Asano act all chummy with dorkily dressed teens? Karma looks at me again, "I'm assuming this your son?" 

"Yes, this is Gakushuu," my father says. "Gakushuu, this is your new music instructor, Karma Akabane." 

I curtly nod in the redhead's direction. He stares at me for a second before turning back to my father and asking, "Is he mute?"

My dad actually laughs at this before replying, "He's actually quite the smart ass who has problems holding his tongue, he's just uncomfortable." I glared up at him, letting all of my pent up anger finally show.

"And whose fault is that?!" I don't mean to shout but somehow that's what happens. Karma laughs slightly and my evil glare shifts from my father to him.

"Wow, he looks pissed," Karma all but chokes out, no longer able to restrain his laughter. 

In some other part of the house, a buzzer starts going off and Karma finally gets his laughing fit under control. "That would be the cookies, " he says, walking over to one of the bookcases and gently setting the violin down on a stand. He then starts to make his way to the French doors only to find me in his way. "Mind moving over so I can get through?" he asks. Without saying a word and with my evil eye still staring him down, I step to the side and let him through. He smirks at me before walking out of the room, my father close behind. I have no choice but to follow. Walking through the living area again, I notice that stacks of what looked like sheet music were scattered everywhere. My eye twitches in irritation. How in the hell can someone be that unorganized, I think to myself? If I'm going to be staying that's going to change. If there is one thing that I can't stand besides my father, it's disorganization. My friends always call me the King of OCD because of it, but to me, it's just common sense. A place for everything and everything in its place. I find myself standing in the kitchen, just in time to see Karma donning a white apron with pink frills. I can't help but laugh. He looks up and smirks. "Oh my god he made a noise," he says excitedly. He reaches into the oven and removes a sheet of cookies, setting them on a cooling rack. My father claps my shoulder hard, making me stumble. 

"What the hell was tha..." I'm abruptly cut off. I look down to see that Karma had shoved a cookie in my mouth, effectively silencing me. There's an impish glint in his eyes as he leans towards me and says, "So do you know what instrument you play?" 

I reach up and remove the cookie from my mouth. "Nope," I say, tilting my chin up in defiance. If they think I'm going to make this easy for them, they're dead wrong. He stares at me before nodding and moving back the cookies. He starts removing them from the sheet and placing them on a platter. I put the cookie back in my mouth and take a bite. They're ridiculously good and I feel myself somewhat relax. "Did you make these yourself?" I ask, finally starting to calm down a bit. 

"Of course," he says with a bright smile. "My grandma would roll over in her grave if I served store bought cookies to guests." 

My dad grins at that, "She was quite the hotheaded old woman, wasn't she? Devious too." Karma nods in agreement. 

"Yes, sir, that she was." Karma glances up at the clock. "Everyone should be arriving around five," he says, "So why don't we get Shuu here settled in and get started prepping for the party?

"Wait, what?" I ask, before tacking on, "And my name isn't Shuu!" 

"The welcoming party for you and friends. Didn't your dad mention it?" he asks, looking puzzled, before turning to look at my father like a parent looks at a child who got caught doing something they shouldn't have been. I find myself glaring at my dad for what seems like the hundredth time that day and am surprised to see that he actually looks slightly uncomfortable. 

My father clears his throat. "It must have slipped my mind," he says, as if anyone would buy such a lame excuse, "and will you quit giving me that look. My years of being scolded by your grandmother are supposed to be over." 

"You should've known better than to think that," Karma says before turning back to me. "Let's get you unpacked and settled in. The party doesn't start for a few more hours so you can get some rest too. Your dad will help me get things set up for the party. Right?" he asks, turning back to face my father. 

"Of course," is all he says.


	2. Party Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update. I plan on updating weekly from here on out. Sorry for all the mistakes in this chapter. It hasn't been through the full editing process yet so if you could just bare with me. 
> 
> Disclaimer: All thing pertaining to Assassination Classroom are owned by the creator, not me
> 
> Song Credits: What I'm Doing Here by Lake Street Dive  
> Dedicated to the One I Love by The Mamas and Papas (Lake Street Dive Cover)

Karma's POV

Once Gakushuu was unpacked and resting in his room, Gakuhou and I got to work. All of the food was pretty much prepped and just needed to be put into dishes, with the exception of the food that the others were bringing and the meat that needed to be cooked on the grill. I went ahead and pulled the aluminum pan full of meat out and went out onto the patio, only pausing to ask Gakuhou to grab a couple of beers out of the fridge. Once we were both outside, I lit the grill and popped open the beer that Gakuhou held out to me. Might as well have a drink while we're waiting, I think. We walk over to the patio table and sit down.

"You know, your still not old enough to drink," the elder Asano stated, eyeing my beer.

I raised an eyebrow at that. "Your point?"

"Nothing, nothing," he says, holding up his hands in mock surrender. "It's just surprising to think that you're the same age as my son. Speaking of which, what do you think of Gakushuu?"

What did I think of Gakushuu, huh? I thought back to those violet eyes and that single tear. The defiant look and the anger towards his father. "He seems like a nice enough guy and I think he's going to be an amazing student, though I don't think he's too thrilled with being here," I say.

"Well, that's to be expected to an extent. He wasn't exactly on board with the whole situation," he says. "But the look on his face when he realized who you were was priceless."

"I noticed that," I said, "he looked at me like an alien when he heard you say my name. Why was that?"

"I didn't tell him you guys were the same age, just that you're a good friend. And knowing his imagination, he probably thought you were some old guy like me."

My eyes widen. "Wow, you can be a real ass when you want to be," I say, noting the devious look in his eyes, "though you're an ass most of the time, so I shouldn't be surprised." I set my almost empty beer down and got up from my chair. I walked over to the grill to check it and saw that it was nice and hot, so I go ahead and put the first round of meat on. The fire started hissing as the blood from the chicken dripped down onto it.

I closed the lid again and started covering the rest of the meat back up when I heard a shrill screech. "Kaaaarma!" I turned to see a skimpily dressed blonde woman and spiky-haired man in jeans and a flannel rounding the corner of my house.

"Irina! Karasuma! What are you guys doing here so early? The party doesn't even start for another hour and a half," I exclaim. "And where are Yuuma and Hirito?"

"We figured we would come see if you needed any help," she said, "and the boys are helping Ren and Araki get settled in. They're all gonna come together later." She takes note of the man sitting behind me and leans in before whispering, "Who's that?"

"That's Gakuhou Asano, he's the friend that arranged everything for all of our new students."  
She made a small "o" with her mouth before smiling deviously and walked over to him.

She extended her hand to him and said, "My name is Irina. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance Mr. Asano. Araki and Ren have told us a lot about you!"

Asano takes her hand and gently kisses her knuckles. "The pleasure is all mine," he says. "You're a piano instructor correct?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Wonderful! I do hope that they didn't say anything too bad about me," he says.

"Oh of course not! Mostly just how you're a "manipulative bastard" and the best ways to go about murdering you," she exclaims, making air quotes with her hands at "manipulative bastard". "They actually managed to come up with some half-decent ideas," she says, looking thoughtful.

There was a slight pause before they both started laughing all out. "I would... love... to see them... try," he manages to get out between fits of laughter. He calmed down after a few seconds and looked up at the busty blond only to chuckle again.

"Good to see that those two get along," I say, turning to Karasuma. "Wouldn't you agree Mr. Stuffed Shirt?"

He huffs at the nickname, responding with a simple, "You know how she is". I smirk at him and nod. He just shakes his head before walking over to his wife and introducing himself as well. They exchange a brief handshake before Karasuma turns to me and says, "I'm taking over on the grill. Mind grabbing me a beer?"

"Sure thing man," I say. I walk back into the kitchen and fetch two more beers, remembering that mine was almost gone. I walk back out and hand him one of the unopened beers before picking up my open one. I down what's left in the bottle then pitch it in the trash can next to the grill. I open up the next bottle and take one more swig before setting it down.  
I look out at the forest surrounding my house and can't help but think that this summer is going to be quite the adventure.

The next hour is spent preparing for the party. Karasuma works on getting the rest of the meat grilled and Irina helps get the rest of the food out and into serving bowls. It wasn't anything to excessive, just a few different types of chips, some baked macaroni, and some side dishes like potato salad and cole slaw. While they were doing that, Gakahou and I got the chairs and tables out of the garage and set them up around the patio. Once that was all done, I figured that I should get the bonfire going for when the temperature started to taper off. I was working on getting the logs set up in a sort of teepee type setup in the fire pit when the guests started to arrive. The first ones to show up were Irina and Karasuma's kids Hirito Maehara and Yumma Isogai. They weren't technically their kids, they were just adopted a few years back after some very unfortunate events. They were followed by two unfamiliar boys that I didn't recognize so I assumed that they were Irina's new live-in students Ren and Araki. They blonde and brunette lead the two boys over to me.

"Hey there Karma," Yuuma says, smiling brightly. I almost had to shield my eyes his smile was so damn bright. Hirito claps my back before throwing an arm around my shoulders.

"Beware the ikeman charm, my friend," he whispers into my ear. "You should know that by now."

I chuckle at that and turn to whisper back, "You should know better than anyone that no one is invulnerable to that smile." He laughs at me before pulling away and walking back over to the two boys that were silently standing there, staring intensely at me. Hirito wraps an arm around the one with a really odd haircut. It was completely shaved on the sides but the top was long enough to cover almost half of his face.

"This is Ren," he starts, before pointing at the other boy over his shoulder, "and this is Araki. These are mom's new students. Ren, Araki, this is our friend and my mom's fellow teacher, Karma Akabane."

They both stare out me for few more seconds before the boy called Araki suddenly shouts, "Whaaat? But he's too young!" Damnit Asano, why did you have to give such a half-assed explanation?

I sigh. "Sorry to disappoint, but I am Karma. Dick head over there just thought it would be funny to leave out a few details," I say, pointing over at said dick who was sitting back at the patio table nursing another beer. He looks up and waves at us, a humorous look on his face. Man, I was going to get him back for this. Sure, it wasn't that big of a deal, but what kind of man would I be if I let it slide. I thought for a few seconds on all the ways to get back at him when it suddenly hit me.

I heard Yuuma and Maehara both chuckle nervously before turning to the others to say, "You better watch out, he's planning something and it's best not to get caught in the crossfire. His idea of payback can get a little extreme."

I scoff at them and say, "Not to worry, this mission is aimed at a singular target. So the repercussions should be minimal". I rub my hands together, smirking. "Now I just have to wait for the perfect moment." They all take a step back and Yuuma actually holds up his hands as if he were trying to ward off evil.

Ren suddenly straightens up and looks at me, as if realizing something super important that he forgot about. "Hey, where is Gakushuu?" he asks, looking around the back yard.

"He's inside sleeping," I say. "He was really worn out by the time we finished getting him unpacked so I volunteered Gakuhou to help me get things set up while he took a nap."

Ren and Araki exchanged an odd look, before the former turns and asks, "He's actually sleeping?"

I stare at them for a moment before I reply. "Why wouldn't he be?"

Ren just shakes his head, saying, "No reason, he just usually has problems sleeping at other people's houses." His tone was dismissive as if it the situation had little significance, but I could tell by the slight stiffness in their posture and their neutral looks that that wasn't the case. Plus, they had both sounded almost shocked at first. Hmm... I wonder? I decide to let that tidbit of information sit on the back burner. I'll poke at it later when I have the time. Other people would be arriving soon and there were still a few things to do.

Turning around, I start walking back towards the house. I glance back, saying, "I'm gonna go ahead and wake him up. Yuuma, you're in charge of getting the fire started. Just don't let that Hirito set the woods on fire again!" I start making my way towards the house again as I hear Hirito trying to field questions from a surprised Ren and Araki. I pause at the grill and tell Karasuma not to let his kids burn down the place before going inside.

I make my to the stairs and start climbing them two at a time. The upstairs didn't consist of much. Just two bedrooms and a bathroom. The bathroom was at the end of the hall and there was one bedroom on each side. I go to the door on left side and gently knock before turning the knob and pushing the door open. The room was quiet as I peeked my head in. Gakushuu was still fast asleep on the bed, only his head stuck out from under the covers. I knock a little louder, hoping to stir him without actually having to go in. As soon as the sound reached him his head disappeared under the blanket, leaving only a splash of orange hair on the blue comforter. Really? Why blue? It doesn't suit him at all, I think to myself before sighing and tiptoeing over to the bed. I'd worry about color schemes later, right now there was a party to attend. I lean down and shake his shoulder, whispering, "Hey Shuu, it's time to wake up."

He mumbles something unintelligible and shifts in his sleep. I raise my voice when I speak again, "Shuu, you gotta get up." I shake his shoulder harder and startle when he bolts upright. His eyes are wide and he looks... terrified. He glances around the room before his eyes settle on me. What the hell is this? I wonder. I put my hand on his shoulder, "Are you okay?"

A sudden look of realization crosses his face and he pushes my hand off of his shoulder. "I'm fine," he huffs out. It's soon followed by a look that I knew all too well. It still held traces of his previous fear, but there was anger in his eyes now too. "And I told you not to call me that!"

I ignore the comment because I have no intention of stopping and instead say, "Some of your friends are waiting outside so you should probably get ready and head on out."

That makes him pause and he looks thoughtful for a moment, "Which ones?"

"Ren and Araki if I remember correctly." He just nods and motions towards the door, dismissing me.

"I'll be down in a moment." I nod once and make my way back out of the room and back downstairs. Well, that was weird, I think to myself.

I walk back outside only to see that even more people had shown up. The first person I see is standing next to Karasuma at the grill. He was tall and lanky with shaggy black hair. He was poking Karasuma's cheek and saying something that I couldn't quite make out but I'm pretty sure it was something along the lines of, "come on, just say it already." Karasuma had an angry look on his face but anyone who knew him could tell that it was half-hearted at best. He was used to Korosensei bugging him. They've been really close friends for years, after all. Hell, Korosensei was the one who introduced him to Irina years ago because of his love for playing matchmaker.

I made my way behind him and was about to grab his sides to scare him when he tsked, "Karma, you know you'll have to do better than that if you want to sneak up on me." I sigh. Damn his inhuman senses. No matter what I did, he was always two steps ahead of me.

"You're no fun," I pout. "You could at least pretend to not notice every once in a while."

"Now where's the fun in that?" he asks, finally turning around to face me. "Just think, when you do actually manage to scare me it will be that much more rewarding!" He looks over my shoulder and hums. "I'm assuming that that's your new student?" he asks, pointing back towards the door. I turn around to see a sleepy-eyed Gakushuu stumble out of the house.

"That would be him," I say, "and speaking of students, is Nagisa here yet?" He just smirks as someone grabs my sides and makes me jump about ten feet into the air and scream. Definitely not my proudest moment. I whirl around and short blue haired boy is standing there with a wide smile on his face.

"Looking for someone?" the blue haired boy asks.

"You little son of a bitch, Nagisa," I huff out, putting him in a headlock and ruffling his hair. "Why would you do that to me?"

"The same reason you try to scare Korosensei all the time," he shrugs, pulling away from me, "because it's funny as hell." I couldn't really argue with him so I just sigh. I hate it when people use my own logic against me. "Though you've never actually managed to scare him," he tacked on just rub salt in the wound.

I sigh again, glancing around the yard to see who else has shown up. Korosensei's wife Aguri and her little sister Kayano were sitting at one of the tables that were situated around the patio, chatting amongst themselves. Two more people I didn't recognize were standing around the fire with the other boys, so I assumed that they were Korosensei's new students. Well, that should be everyone. It's time to get this party started. "Is the food about done Karasuma?"

He glances over his shoulder and nods, "The chicken and the burgers are. The only thing left is the hotdogs."

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear." I turn around and cup my hands around my mouth before shouting, "FOODS READY!!! COME AND GET IT!" Nagisa chuckles and the boys around the fire pit murmured amongst themselves for a second before making their way towards the patio. I caught sight of Gakushuu sitting at the table with his Dad and Irina. He looked like he was on the verge of falling asleep again. Maybe some coffee would help wake him up. I walk back into the kitchen and grab a coffee cup and fill it. Hmm, I wonder if he likes sugar and creamer? Nodding my head I go ahead and grab the tea tray with its little pitcher for creamer and bowl of sugar cubes. Setting the coffee cup down on it I fill the creamer and the cup before heading back outside. Gakushuu had his head down, only looking up when I set the tray down in front him.

"You definitely look like you could use this," I say, " and I didn't know how you liked it so I brought some sugar and creamer too."

He eyes the coffee mug for a moment before picking it up and smelling it. As he takes a sip, his eyes light up and he nods his head, "Thank you."

"No problem," I say, "and you should probably get something to eat before the rest of the boys devour everything."

The food was pretty great and soon everyone was ready to pop. The exception to that being Gakushuu, who had only nibbled on the food that he got. His excuse being that he wasn't that hungry. Whatever floats his boat I guess. We were all sitting around the fire at this point with the exception of Korosensei who brought out his bass. He plucked a few notes before gesturing at Irina and I, "Why don't you two join me?" We nodded and walked back to the house to grab the portable keyboard for Irina and my violin. By the time we made it back outside, Korosensei was already playing a slow melody on the huge instrument. It was a song the three of us had learned a few years back and it was one of his personal favorites. I joined in, creating the rhythm of the song while Irina set up the keyboard. Once she was done, she joined in as well. The attention that was focused on all three of them shifted to her when she started singing. Her voice was beautiful just lik the rest of her.

_Nobody knows what I'm doing here_  
_And I ain't got a clue_  
_Messin around with these other fools_  
_When I'm not with you_

There's _been so many nights_  
_When I've longed for your touch_  
There's _been so many days_  
_When our love was not enough_

Korosensei joined in, his smooth voice merging with Irina's for the next part. It was a weird song choice for a bonfire, but then again Korosensei's tastes were a bit on the odd side.

_Oh leave me, leave me, just leave me_  
_Can't you see me, see me_

_Nobody knows what I'm doing here_  
_And I ain't got a clue_  
Messin _around with these other fools_  
_When I'm not with you_

The notes flowed from the violin, soft and drawn out just like the notes from the other instruments.

There's _been so many nights_  
_When I've longed for your touch_  
There's _been so many days_  
_When our love was not enough_

_Oh, leave me, leave me, leave me_  
_Can't you see me, see me_

_Nobody knows what I'm doing here_  
_And I ain't got a clue_  
Messin _around with these other fools_  
_When I'm not, when I'm_ not, _when I'm not_ oohhh

 _Nobody knows what I'm doing here_  
_And I ain't got a clue_  
Messin _around with these other fools_  
_When I'm not with you_  
_When I'm not with you_

The song wrapped up and the others started clapping. "What's next?" I ask, turning back to the other two.

"Switch me," Irina says, standing from the piano and grabbing my violin. I shrug and sit at the keyboard. I look around the fire, seeing everyone's eyes were still on us. Gakushuu was sitting with his friends and Asano was on the bench next to them with Aguri and Kayano. Nagisa was sitting with Yuuma and Hirito on the third bench across from the others. They all looked expectant as Irina started playing with Korosensei joining moments later. "Shit," I murmur under my breath. Why this song? I look over at her and she is giving me the "you better start or you're gonna be in a world of hurt" look. I consider walking away but the shiver that ran down my spine kept me in place. Fuck, I didn't want to do this. I hated singing in front of people, with the exception of a few people. So, of course, she picked this song. The one song that I sang when we played together. It didn't help that it was an old school sappy love song either. I let out a huff of air, trying to ignore everything but the music as I started.

( _Karma)_  
_While I'm far away from_ you my _baby_  
_Whisper a little for me my baby_  
_Because it's hard for me my baby_  
_And the darkest hour is just before dawn_  
_(All three of them)_  
_Each night before you go to bed my baby_  
_Whisper a little prayer for_ me _my baby_  
_(Karma)_  
_And tell all the stars above_  
_This is dedicated to the one I love_  
_(Irina and Korosensei)_  
_(Love can never be exactly like we want it to be)_  
_(Karma)_  
_I could be satisfied knowing you love me_  
_(Irina and Korosensei_  
_(And there's one thing I want you to do)_  
_(Especially for me)_  
_(Karma)_  
_And it's something that everybody needs_  
_(All three of them)_  
_While I'm far away from_ you my _baby_  
_Whisper a little prayer for_ me _my baby_  
_(Karma)_  
_Because it's hard for me my baby_  
_And the darkest hour is just before dawn_

The other instruments died off and soon the only thing that could be heard was the keyboard. I chanced a look around and saw that all eyes were on me by this point. Heat crept up my cheeks and I almost missed the cue to start singing again because of my embarrassment. I looked back down and focused on the music again.

 _(Irina and Korosensei)_  
_If there's one thing I want you to do especially for me_  
_(Karma)_  
_Then it's something that everybody needs_  
_(All three of them)_  
_Each night before you go to bed my baby_  
_Whisper a little prayer for_ me _my baby_  
_(Karma)_  
_And tell all the stars above_  
_This is dedicated to the one I love_  
_This is dedicated_  
_(Korosensei)_  
_(to the one I love)_  
_(Karma)_  
_This is dedicated to the one I love_  
_This is dedicated_  
_(Irina)_  
_(to the one I love)_  
_(All three of them)_  
_This is dedicated_

The song was finally over and I looked over at my fellow teachers. Each one of them was sporting a goofy ass smile that made me want to cringe. Just how big of a fool did I make out of myself? The rest of the group was quiet except Maehara. "Of course the Devil has a silver tongue," he says. Don't even give them the chance to comment, I think to myself. And before I even gave it a second thought, I started playing again. Looking at the other two to join me. They seemed to get the message and started up. We played a few more songs before Nagisa and Yuuma went and grabbed their guitars and joined in. We all played late into the night. Everyone taking turns playing. Everyone seemed to be having a great time, though the new students seemed a tad bit intimidated. Except for Gakushuu of course. His violet analyzed everything. He seemed especially focused on whoever was playing the keyboard. Hmm, I couldn't help but think that it would be a perfect match for him if that was the instrument he chose.

I don't realize how hard I'm staring at him until he asks, "Can I help you with something?" There was smugness to his voice that rubbed me the wrong way, but I just shook it off. He was probably still angry about the whole situation still and I could hardly blame him. I would be pissed too if I were in his situation.

"How would you feel about the learning the piano?" I ask.

He seems to really think about it for a moment before shrugging and saying, "It doesn't matter to me." I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was only feigning disinterest. The way his eyes slightly widened at the word piano was a dead give away. Being a musician had taught me a lot of things and reading people was one of those things. You had to know what people thought of your music or you would never improve and words were hardly ever accurate. People's faces were where you would find the truth. I sharpen my gaze on him and decide this was a topic for when we actually started lessons. I would let him play around with a few different instruments just to make sure but I knew the piano was the most fitting for him. I just nod my head at him and turn back to the music the others were playing. I would worry about that tomorrow. For now, I'm going to enjoy this party to the fullest.

By the time everyone was packed up and headed home, it was already midnight. I had Gakuhou help me bring the picnic table and chairs up onto the patio and Gakushuu finish putting the food away. The rest of the cleanup could wait until morning. Once that was all done, I set up the guest room downstairs for Gakuhou while he showered. Gakushuu had already gone up to his room saying he was going to study for a bit. Odd, but whatever floats his boat I guess. I was wiped out and it had been an extremely long day. A good day, but long nonetheless. I made my up to my room and collapsed onto my bed. Almost immediately, my eyes start feeling heavy and I drift off.

**Author's Note:**

> How was it? Feedback is very welcome! 
> 
> Chapter 2 will be posted in a few days!


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